The Think Piece

“Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” Anton Chekhov

“When something can be read without effort, great effort has gone into its writing.” Enrique Jardiel Poncela

“Every writer I know has trouble writing.” Joseph Heller

The Concept

The Procedure

​The Think Piece is an informal essay assignment (one to two pages), which is actually an extended free-write on a topic that concerns us. Think Pieces serve a variety of purposes:

they provide an opportunity for intense analysis and/or self-reflection;

they allow us to probe deeply into a topic of study and/or our personal experiences, and share those our analysis of that topic and/or experiences with the class;

they help us build a sense of community and trust within our classroom;

they provide us with the opportunity to learn/consider/discuss a variety of viewpoints.

​Everyone in class will write a one to two page analysis or reflection in which you discuss an aspect or aspects of the assigned reading. Your Think Piece should adhere to MLA formatting, but include only your name and an appropriate title on one line as the heading (Ex. John Carter - Analysis of Carton as a Christ Figure in Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities. Think Pieces should be typed. You will not be graded on fine points of grammar and style for this assignment; the content is the most important part of this assignment. When you bring your Think Piece to class, we will place them all in a central location in the room. For about 20-30 minutes, you will each choose at least three of your classmates’ Think Pieces to read. As you read each Think Piece, you will write comments and questions directly onto the papers. When this “Silent Discussion” is over, you will be left with the comments and questions of your peers on your Think Piece. We may then use these for an extended discussion later.

The Think Piece Concept and Procedure was taken from:Graham, Peg and Sally Hudson-Ross, eds. Teacher Mentor: A Dialogue for Collaborative Learning. New York: Teachers College Press, 1999. 113-122.

Mrs. Amy Carter

acarter@lexrich5.org

803.575.5400803.575.5420 (fax)

Chapin High School300 Columbia AvenueChapin, South Carolina 29036​United States of America

"As we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." - Marianne Williamson